Workers demand Apple products from IT managers over other products

Some 82pc of IT managers have demands from employees for Apple iPads and 79pc for Apple iPhones, according to a study of workplaces in Ireland by Zinopy.

This compares with 56pc who have received demands for Android-based smartphones, 36pc for Android-based tablets, and 39pc for BlackBerry phones.

The Zinopy survey was carried out in May 2013, with 57 senior Irish IT executives and aimed to explore the reality in Irish businesses behind the BYOD hype and also to examine how businesses are protecting their wireless networks.

Despite the large numbers of employees asking for Apple mobile devices for work-related activities, there is disparity with those who have formally authorised their use, with 68pc of the IT managers saying they have done so. A total of 29pc said they still do not allow employees to bring their own devices into the workplace but they do have plans to enable it at some point in the future. One in 10 said they have no plans to allow BYOD in their organisation.

Security was the main challenge in relation to BYOD, with more than half of those surveyed citing securing the device as the main concern.

Establishing a corporate policy on acceptable use is a key challenge for a quarter of respondents.

Additionally, more than half of the IT managers reported a 50pc increase in the number of devices accessing their wireless network. To securely manage this, Irish organisations need to implement technologies that can enforce policies across the network, to devices and applications.

BYOD and mobile strategy

“BYOD has been one of the buzz words of the last couple of years, ever since Apple introduced its range of iPhones,” said John Ryan, CEO, Zinopy.

“Employees have since had an increasing role to play in the mobile strategy of their employers and in some cases are forcing the hand of the IT department to enable these devices.

“In order to have a modicum of control and properly secure the business, employers and employees need to work together.

“However, a recent worldwide survey of employees, carried out by Aruba Networks, found that almost half of European employees are fearful of allowing their employers to have access to their personal mobile devices as this opens up access to their personal information.

“These concerns are leading many employees to keep their personal devices away from the IT department, with one in six of the European workers in the Aruba survey admitting that they have not told their employers that they use a personal device for work-related activities.

“From our survey, we identified a 50pc increase in the number of devices accessing the wireless networks. If these devices are unsecured, they are putting the data they are accessing, as well as the entire network, at risk. Securing the wireless network would protect corporate data and ensure optimum levels of confidentiality,” Ryan said.